


friends?

by esoterpsi



Category: Doki Doki Literature Club! (Visual Novel)
Genre: Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, F/F, Friends to Lovers, Gals being pals, Useless Lesbians, Wholesome, jk they're lesbians, they're lesbians harold
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-30
Updated: 2019-05-30
Packaged: 2020-03-09 04:28:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,077
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18909556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/esoterpsi/pseuds/esoterpsi
Summary: AU in which MC doesn't exist, and Natsuki and Yuri have an argument similar to their in-game one, however it ends a lot differently.





	friends?

"Alright everyone, it's time to share poems!" Monika's voice rang out across the sparsely populated literature clubroom, shattering not only several figurative glasses but also the peace. As much as she insisted it was for the best, poem sharing always tended to end in disaster between the four girls - usually Natsuki and Yuri. Although there'd never been a full-on fight, it was clear that the two were not partial to the other's criticisms, and the poem-sharing segment of the club was something that they both dreaded. Even so, every day Monika called for the activity; Yuri swore that she just wanted to watch the world burn. Yuri raised her head from the novel she was reading, hoping to snag the attention of Sayori, who always had something nice to say about her writing (although sometimes she doubted that the bouncier girl could read her cursive, she wasn't going to pass up on the compliments Sayori gave her. Sadly, it seemed like the odds were not in Yuri's favour, as a certain brunette had dragged her target to a free desk and was animatedly chatting to her, so as usual she was faced with Natsuki.

The two girls silently approached each other, and hesitantly passed each other the poems, knowing it was inevitable; if they refused to share poems, Monika knew. And if Monika knew then Sayori would know too, and she'd be sad, and nobody liked it when Sayori was sad.

"So, what do you think?"

"Well, it's cute..." Yuri muttered after reading through the scrawled writing on the paper Natsuki had handed her moments earlier. She had enjoyed the poem, as simple as it seemed to be, but she honestly didn't know what else to say; the shorter girl was prone to finding the most random things insulting, even if they were clearly not supposed to be, and she hoped this was not one of those things.

"Cute?!" From the tone of Natsuki's voice, it was evident that Yuri's hopes were in vain. "It's about the feeling of giving up, how is that cute?!"

"I-I just meant..." Again, Yuri found herself searching for the right thing to say. "I was trying to say something nice."

The taller girl flinched, this time knowing full well she was saying the wrong thing.

"Oh, so you have to try to say something nice? You could just say you hate it, I know that's what you really think!"

"No, I-"

"Don't even bother. And for the record, I think your poems are pretentious-ly fancy."

That was it. Yuri had had enough of this argument; it happened every time they had to share poems and every time it felt like a knife digging into her ribs. She'd try to say something Natsuki would actually see as a compliment - heaven knows she wanted her to - and instead she'd end up in a fight with the girl, which would only end when Sayori or Monika interrupted (usually Sayori, as earlier mentioned it was plain to see that a small part of Monika enjoyed watching the two fight).

**"Gosh Yuri, for someone who uses such intelligent language in writing, you're really lacking in the eloquence department, aren't you?"**

She shook her head to get rid of the invasive thoughts that were starting to creep in. They always did, and they did nothing to help the escalating argument. It was at that moment that she realised that she hadn't heard a word Natsuki had said since she zoned out. From her face it seemed like she wanted an answer, but Yuri was unable to give one. Instead she turned and ran.

**"Like a coward."**

"Shut up," she muttered to herself as she left, pushing the doors of the club open to make a somewhat dramatic exit, even though she could feel her frustration at herself leaking through onto her face.

She didn't get far, however, before a hand grabbed her arm. Thinking it to be a teacher about to reprimand her, she turned around before stopping in shock.

"Hey, listen." Natsuki murmured, her grip surprisingly strong for someone so small.

"W-what?" Yuri slapped herself internally for stuttering.

Natsuki sighed, seemingly trying to sound irritated but ending up more concerned.

"I can't believe I'm saying this," she said, more to herself before raising her voice to address the taller girl properly. "I... I didn't realise what I said about your poems being pretentious upset you that much."

Yuri was confused for a moment before it hit her.  _"Wait, she thinks I'm upset because of that?"_ In actuality, Yuri had quite a thick skin when it came to her writing being criticized. She had to; half the other people in her class would ruthlessly tease her for it.

"Well, I'm sorry." It sounded like Natsuki had to force it out, and Yuri tried to interrupt her, telling her there was no need in hushed and hurried words. Natsuki was much louder, however, and carried on like she didn't even notice. 

"Listen, the truth is, I don't think your poems are pretentious at all. They're really good, and I guess sometimes I say things I don't mean, but this I do mean, and I was just angry because you called my poems cute and I don't want them to be just cute, it takes away from the meaning I've given them."

 Natsuki, surprisingly enough, stopped for a second to breathe, and Yuri took that time to quietly respond.

"I... I didn't realise you hated your poems being called cute that much. I'm... I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have undermined your work."

The shorter girl looked up in surprise - she hadn't been expecting an answer like that, and it showed on her face. "Eh, it's okay. I shouldn't have shouted at you like that though, it wasn't very mature."

Yuri didn't know what to say to that, so instead she just looked away. They'd never had a conversation like this before, and it felt, for lack of a better word, weird. A moment of awkward silence passed, feeling like months to both girls.

"So, are we friends again?" Natsuki asked, seeming slightly impatient. Ah, she was almost back to her usual self. She held out a hand to shake, which made Yuri have to bite back a smile at the unecessary formality. Something about the conversation had given her a strange surge of confidence, and the taller girl ignored the handshake to pull Natsuki into a hug.

"Yeah, friends."


End file.
